Britons 'in Hamas chief hit squad'

Tuesday 16 February 2010 09:04 BST

Claims that British and Irish passport holders are among an alleged 11-man hit squad wanted in Dubai for the apparent assassination of a Hamas commander were being investigated by London and Dublin today.

Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, the city state's police chief, released the names and photos of the alleged gang members, along with their nationalities, at a press conference yesterday.

He said they fled Dubai after killing Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in his luxury hotel room last month. It is believed that a request has been placed with Interpol for arrest warrants for the alleged gang - which comprises six British passport holders, three Irish, a French and a German national.

The British Foreign Office said last night it was "seeking further information" following the claims. Counterparts in Dublin were likewise "awaiting clarification".

Neither were able to confirm the nationalities or identities of those wanted by authorities in Dubai.

Al-Mabhouh, a founder member of Hamas's military wing, died of suffocation on January 20, it is claimed. The Palestinian group has pointed the finger at Israel, blaming Mossad - the country's secret service - for carrying out the hit.

Lt Gen Tamim did not go as far as directly blaming Israel, but said it was possible that "leaders of certain countries gave orders to their intelligence agents to kill" the Hamas man.

He also outlined how Dubai police believe the assassination was carried out.

During the news conference, the police chief showed CCTV footage of the alleged hit squad arriving on separate planes the day before al-Mabhouh died.

They booked into different hotels and wore wigs and fake beards to disguise their appearances, he added.

At least two of the alleged gang watched the Hamas commander check in to his luxury hotel close to Dubai international airport and booked a nearby room, it was further claimed.

And around five hours after setting foot in city state, al-Mabhouh was ambushed and killed, Lt Gen Tamim said. It is not known if he opened the door to his alleged killers himself.

All of the suspects left the United Arab Emirates within 19 hours of their arrivals, it was claimed.

Hamas officials have so far failed to state why their commander was in Dubai amid suggestions that he was on his way to Iran.

In a statement released last month, the militant group acknowledged that al-Mabhouh was involved in the kidnapping and killing of two Israeli soldiers in 1989, adding that until his death, he had played a "continuous role in supporting his brothers in the resistence inside the occupied homeland".